Freshman OH Ebony Nwanebu has won Pac-12 Freshman of the Week honors five times in 2013.

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Nov. 11, 2013

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. - USC freshman outside hitter Ebony Nwanebu was named Pac-12 Freshman of the Week for the week of Nov. 4-10. The first-year Trojan was honored by the conference for the fifth time overall. Her selection equals the league record of five, set by Samantha Bricio in 2012, and gives USC 11 all-time which is the most for any school since the award's inception in 2011. Nwanebu was chosen alongside California's Christina Higgins who was the Offensive Player of the Week, and Washington's Jenna Orlandini who was named Defensive Player of the Week.

Nwanebu was chosen for her performance in the first week of the season and fellow freshman outside hitter Elise Ruddins won the honor for the week of Sept. 9-15. Nwanebu then repeated Sept. 30, Oct. 7, and Oct. 14, and became the first player ever to be honored in three consecutive weeks.

Nwanebu powered the Trojans to a pair of 3-0 wins over Oregon and Oregon State this week as she posted 23 kills (3.83 kps) with an unthinkable .488 hitting percentage. Nwanebu had 10 kills against just one error on 20 swings (.450) against the Ducks and came back to put up 13 kills with just one error on 23 attempts against the Beavers (.522). She carried the USC offense, which has won four straight matches with 4.17 points per set. Nwanebu logged her fourth consecutive double-digit match in kills and her 15th this season, which ties for team lead.

Weekly awards have been selected every week of the season since the Pac-12 began sponsoring women's volleyball in 1986. It is the third year in which the conference has selected separate offensive, defensive, and rookie honorees. USC has 57 all-time player of the week honors and 11 freshman of the week certificates.

The fourth-ranked Trojans (22-3, 12-2 Pac-12) head to the Pacific Northwest for a pair of pivotal road matches, this weekend. USC faces No. 3 Washington (21-1, 13-1) at Alaska Airlines Arena in Seattle at 6 p.m. PT on Friday, Nov. 15, in a match that could greatly affect the outcome of the conference championship. The Trojans then head to Pullman, Wash., where they will take on Washington State (16-11, 3-11) at Bohler Gymnasium at 1 p.m. PT on Sunday, Nov. 17. Both matches will be carried live by the Pac-12 Networks. Please visit USCTrojans.com for more information.